British Author, he is best remembered for his best selling “Tom Brown” books, which captivated teenaged boys during the latter half of the 19th century. Born the second son of John Hughes in Uffington, Berkshire; his father was the editor of the “Boscobel Tracts.” From 1834 he attended Rugby School, and in 1842 went to Oriel College where he obtained his Bachelor of Arts degree. While at Rugby, he was greatly influenced by Dr. Thomas Arnold, considered one of the most influential British schoolmasters of the 19th century, and the source of Thomas Hughes’ ideal schoolteacher in his books. While in school, Hughes excelled at sports, especially cricket. He began working as a lawyer three years later, passing the bar in 1848, and later becoming Queen’s Counsel (QC) in 1869. At the same time he joined the Christian Socialist movement and was responsible for the formation of some of the early trade unions. In 1854, he founded the Working Men's college on Great Ormond Street in London. In 1853, he married Frances Ford and settled in Wimbledon, London where he wrote his most famous novel, 'Tom Brown's Schooldays' (1857) and it's sequel, 'Tom Brown at Oxford' (1861), which drew upon his own school experiences. He also wrote non-fiction books including biographies of Alfred the Great (1870) and David Livingstone (1889). He became a Queen’s Council in 1869, having already been a Member of Parliament (MP) representing Lambeth and later, Frome. In 1880 he founded a settlement in Rugby, Tennessee, in the United States, which he designed as an experiment in utopian living; although it proved unsuccessful, the town of Rugby, Tennessee still exists today. In 1912, his daughter Lilian perished in the RMS Titanic sinking. He retired to Brighton, England, where he died. He has been honored with a statue outside the Rugby School Library.